[November 14, 2006]DOWNSTATE’S COLLEGE OF HEALTH RELATED PROFESSIONS IS 40

SUNY Downstate Medical Center’s College of Health Related Professions (CHRP) is celebrating its 40th anniversary. Opening in the fall of 1966 along with Downstate’s College of Nursing, CHRP initially enrolled twenty students: three in physical therapy (PT); four in occupational therapy (OT); and, although computers had not become instrumental as they are today in health care administration, thirteen students enrolled in medical computing science.
The college was initially housed in the “T” Building at Kings County Hospital Center. Today it occupies an entire floor of the Health Science Education Building on the Downstate campus, at the corner of Lenox Road and New York Avenue. Over the years CHRP has offered a variety of programs as the needs of health care providers expanded and changed. Today, CHRP offers six programs, with four at the graduate level.
The allied health professions are among the fastest growing professions nationwide. Virtually all CHRP graduates find lucrative employment upon graduation. Most CHRP students are from New York City and State with a high number coming from nearby neighborhoods in Brooklyn.
On November 9, the college held a gala reunion at the Brooklyn Museum. Graduates and faculty came from near and far to celebrate, reminisce and share their stories. John C. LaRosa, MD, president of SUNY Downstate, said, “Although Downstate’s College of Health Related Professions has changed and grown over the years, some things have remained constant. Those include our bright and eager students; a dedicated and skilled faculty; and Downstate’s commitment to meeting the health care needs of Brooklyn, the region, and beyond.”